Sandy, my household's newest family member, is about 1 year old and is cute as a button.
He has golden fur and gold eyes — and he is oh so energetic. He hides under chairs and "bops" whoever is walking by, whether they are human, canine or feline.
My husband, Jim, and I adopted Sandy from Feline Friends of North Okaloosa County, and we are happy to have him; he adds joy to our lives.
I'm grateful to organizations such as Feline Friends and Panhandle Animal Lovers for rescuing homeless and abandoned cats and dogs, keeping them from being euthanized.
If you are interested in a new pet, call Feline Friends, for cats, at 682-7273, or PAL, which specializes in dogs, at 683-4104. Both organizations have wonderful pets looking for their forever home.
In addition, kittens are available at many local veterinarians' offices.
These shelters always need food donations, cat litter, clean blankets and towels, monetary donations for spaying, neutering, and heartworm prevention, and loving foster homes.
You will receive more love from your fur baby than you can imagine; he or she will be a loyal, forever friend — one you can cuddle with and cling to during hard times, such as those our country has recently seen.
•••
As you probably know, on July 16, the heavily armed Mohammad Abdulazeez forced his way into a Chattanooga, Tenn., Navy reserve center and killed five service members.
With this tragedy, we remember the families who lost loved ones; the pain and sadness of losing a child, spouse or parent stays with someone for life.
In addition, we need to pray for the safety of our troops, whether they are stationed here or abroad.
Since we never know what tomorrow holds, make sure that you regularly speak with your loved ones, and pray that the Lord will protect them.
Life can be very short, so we need to take every opportunity to share our love with family and friends.
To our military members:
Thank you for your service to our country.
Thank you for all you do to keep our country free.
I pray for your safety.
Janice Lynn Crose lives in Crestview with her husband, Jim; her two rescue collies, Shane and Jasmine; and two cats, Kathryn and Prince Valiant.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: CROSE: Fur babies need forever homes; troops need prayers